Run to You
by DaleJrsGal
Summary: After Ethan breaks Lizzie’s heart, she turns to Gordo for help. But Lizzie doesn’t know what to do when Gordo gives her unexpected advice. [One-shot; movie never happened.]


Title: Run to You  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own Lizzie McGuire or related characters.  
  
Summary: After Ethan breaks Lizzie's heart, she turns to Gordo for help. But Lizzie doesn't know what to do when Gordo gives her unexpected advice. [One-shot; movie never happened.]

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A/N: Hey guys...my 1st fanfic, but I've read so many I feel like I've already written a thousand myself. And just to let you know, my writing style is to-the-point so that's pretty much why it's a one-shot. PLEASE REVIEW! You don't have to be easy on me because criticism = improvement. I can take it.  
  
BTW, the song in this story is "Run to You" by Whitney Houston. Just had to add that in so I don't get sued or anything.  
  
On with the story...

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"I'm sorry, Lizzie. You really liked me so I wanted to give you a chance. But we just don't have the chemistry."  
  
Lizzie looked down. She spoke softly so he wouldn't hear her voice quiver. "I suppose you and Kate have chemistry, huh?" She bit her lip.  
  
"Yeah, we do."  
  
"I don't understand. She bosses you around, and she's mean." Tears began to swell up in her eyes.  
  
"I don't know how to explain it, but we have a connection that me and you don't have. But I still want you to be my friend, Lizzie. You're good at being someone's friend."  
  
Lizzie didn't answer. She just nodded and slowly turned and walked away. Thoughts were zooming in and out of her head. Kate's prettier than me, and smarter than me, and more fun than me. That's why Ethan likes her. No one will ever like me like that, she thought. She just didn't understand. She had crushed on him throughout middle school, and now, in her Freshman year of high school, she felt as if that crush had grown into love. She could never stop thinking about him and how much she enjoyed being around him. Now he wouldn't accept her heart.  
  
It was only the first week of her high school career and it was already absolutely horrible. Ethan broke up with her after only a short summer relationship. Miranda wasn't there to help. Although she usually would want to be alone in this kind of situation, she felt as if she needed to talk to someone. Gordo was always there for her. He would always tell her things she needed to hear, good or bad.

* * *

Gordo sat in the library, already on the second chapter of his geometry book. He always wanted to get ahead early; he enjoyed being known as "the smart guy". No, "the really smart guy". But his mind began to drift-- about Lizzie. He really liked her, ever since the seventh grade. Or maybe it was the sixth grade. He wasn't sure, but it didn't matter. Although he and Ethan were pretty good friends, his heart was jealous of him. He had his girl's heart. But Gordo knew that their relationship wouldn't last; he knew their love wasn't real. The only thing he knew was real was his own love for Lizzie.

* * *

Lizzie found Gordo in the library, the place she knew he'd be. She briefly thought about the times she had teased him about using his lunch time to read text books. But this time she didn't feel like teasing; her heart was hurting and she had no one else to turn to.  
  
"Gordo, I don't know what to do. I love Ethan, and he won't love me back." Her eyes were red from her tears.  
  
"What happened? Did you guys break up?" Gordo selfishly felt happy inside, but he also knew how much Lizzie liked, not loved, Ethan.  
  
"Yeah. He said we didn't have chemistry. But I really thought we could make it work." Lizzie tried with all her might to hold her tears back.  
  
"You can't MAKE relationships work. You have to have two people who are in love with each other for it to work."  
  
"But I love him," she whispered.  
  
"Lizzie, you don't know what love is. You just had a silly crush; it was puppy love! You've just been obsessing over him." He didn't mean for his words to sound so cold, but he meant it all. He was so frustrated inside that she couldn't see who really loved her for who she was.  
  
"I need a friend right now, not someone who's going to criticize me while I'm really hurting! And what do you mean I don't know what love is? Don't you think I'd know?" She paused. "If you're so smart, Gordo, then why don't you tell me what love is, since you think I have no clue?"  
  
This is it, Gordo thought. This is your chance. Show her what love really is. Just then, after holding everything back since the sixth grade, after countless nights of planning his move but never having the courage to do anything, he spontaneously leaned toward Lizzie and kissed her. He felt her jump and pulled away.  
  
"Gordo? What are you doing?" Lizzie looked confused, and her eyes were wide. Gordo wasn't sure if she hated the kiss, or if she was just in shock.  
  
"You wanted me to tell you what love is. And that's the only way I knew how, because I couldn't put into words how I feel about you, how I've felt about you since the beginning of middle school." He couldn't believe he had just spilled his heart to her, his deepest darkest secret. But he had, and, in a way, he felt relieved.  
  
Lizzie didn't seem impressed. She just looked at him. She was confused. How could her only dependable friend have feelings for her? "Please, Gordo. Don't do this to me. You're my friend, not my boyfriend. I'm sorry, but I don't think I can ever see you as more than a friend."  
  
Gordo's heart sank. He felt so stupid. He should have known that this was the absolute worst time for Lizzie to reveal this to her. He blew it. He had wanted so bad for the moment to be perfect, but it was in no way perfect. It was a mess. He heard Lizzie mutter the words, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."  
  
"No, I think you did," Gordo said coldly. He gathered his books and walked out of the library. He could hear Lizzie begin to cry as he left, but he wasn't even sure if he even cared. He was angry with himself, with Lizzie, and with Ethan. He wasn't even sure why, but he didn't think he could ever say another word to Lizzie again. He still loved her, and felt like he always would, but his heart ached too bad. All he could think about was how much time Lizzie devoted to Ethan: thinking about him, following him, spying on him. Why couldn't she have those feelings for Gordo? He was always there for her, always cared for her. Why couldn't she just see that?

* * *

Lizzie ran to her room as soon as she got home, practically ignoring her mom's friendly "Hi, honey! How was your day?" She had two huge wounds in her heart – the lack of love from Ethan and too much love from Gordo. It was all so confusing. Didn't she know what she wanted? She couldn't figure out why she was so hurt from Gordo admitting he loved her. Wasn't that supposed to be a good thing? Yeah, she liked Gordo, but not like that. Ethan was the one and only for her. Lizzie reached for her stereo remote. Music always calmed her down, at least enough for the tears to stop flowing.  
  
"I know that when you look at me there's so much that you just don't see; But if you would only take the time, I know in my heart you'd find a girl who's scared sometimes, who isn't always strong; Can't you see the hurt in me, I feel so all alone.  
  
I wanna run to you, I wanna run to you, Won't you hold me in your arms and keep me safe from harm; I wanna run to you, but if I come to you Tell me, will you stay, or will you run away?  
  
Each day, each day I play the role of someone always in control; But at night I come home and turn the key, There's nobody there, no one cares for me.  
  
Oh, what's the sense of trying hard to find your dreams without someone to share them with, tell me, what does it mean?  
  
I wanna run to you, I wanna run to you, Won't you hold me in your arms and keep me safe from harm; I wanna run to you, but if I come to you Tell me, will you stay, or will you run away?  
  
I need you here, I need you here to wipe away my tears To kiss away my fears If you only knew how much I wanna run to you..."  
  
All she could think about as Whitney sang was Gordo. Not Ethan. Gordo. Suddenly it clicked. Maybe all this time she had been lying to herself. Maybe she did like Gordo a little more than just a friend. She always ran to him in time of need. She had never gotten so angry at him when he tried to comfort her before. But this time it was different. He had told her something that she didn't want to accept because all along she had felt the same way. Ethan was her cover-up.

* * *

All Lizzie could feel the next day at school was butterflies swooping around and around in her stomach. She wanted so desperately to apologize to Gordo and tell him that everything she had said yesterday was false. She couldn't get over how weird it was – one day she's devastated that Ethan breaks up with her, and the next day she's swooning over her best friend. Ethan no longer even mattered to her.  
  
The lunch bell finally rang and Lizzie hurried to the library. Gordo was there as she knew he would be.  
  
"Hey, Gordo!" Her mood was much different than the day before.  
  
No answer. Oh no, he's mad at me, Lizzie thought. Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry.  
  
"Listen, I came to tell you how sorry I am about yesterday. I wasn't thinking straight." Don't cry, don't cry, PLEASE don't cry.  
  
"Oh, that. I forgot all about that. I'm over it." His words were sharp and cold to her. He was obviously very hurt, but who could blame him? She had ripped out his heart and shattered it into a million pieces. She was so selfish; all she had thought about was Lizzie, Lizzie, Lizzie.  
  
Lizzie grabbed the chair next to Gordo and sat down. He immediately leaned the other way, trying to avoid her, make her go away. She wondered what to do, but then she decided to do what her heart told her to do.  
  
"Gordo?"  
  
No answer.  
  
The next thing Gordo knew was Lizzie's lips on his. Whoa! She pulled away, quite embarrassed at what she just did. Whoa, hold the phones... did she just kiss her best friend?!  
  
"W-what was that for?" He looked her straight in the eyes for the first time in twenty-four hours.  
  
"I, uh, wanted to prove to you that I know what love is."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"I love you, but I never had the courage to tell you, or admit it to myself. I guess I just went after Ethan so I wouldn't have to answer to my true feelings."  
  
Gordo couldn't help but smile. Finally, it was perfect. It erased all traces of the harsh pain he had felt in the library just the day before. He was speechless.  
  
"Thanks, Gordo."  
  
"For what?"  
  
"For being true to yourself and to me. I knew I could always run to you." Lizzie smiled.  
  
"So, uh, are we like, a, uh, couple now?" Inquiring minds wanted to know.  
  
"Yeah, I guess so," Lizzie beamed.  
  
As the bell rang for lunch to end, Lizzie and Gordo walked hand-in-hand out of the library.

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A/N: So what'd ya think? I had actually written half of this story like a year ago and found it on my computer today and decided to finish it. Hope ya liked it. If not, tell me why! Oh no, I sound like an essay question. So what do I say to wrap up my little A/N here? Thanks for reading? 


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